Unwelcome generosity

Around a fifth of Ukraine’s 37m citizens left the country in the wake of Russia’s invasion two years ago. Over half of those, or 4m, have been granted refugee-like protection in EU countries. Extending hospitality has been a point of pride from Spain to Estonia. But the arrangement was always meant to be temporary. As the war has dragged on and life away from the front lines has largely returned to normal, questions have arisen as to why anyone still needs to stay away. President Zelensky has spoken of “citizens” at home in contrast to “refugees” who left, and praises the 1m or more who have returned. In a war of endurance, the domestic economy will sustain the effort all the better if citizens currently abroad come home. Such talk is discomfiting to EU countries because their abiding generosity to those once fleeing war may be undermining the future of the country they are trying to help.

(Adapted from “Europe’s Generosity To Ukrainian Refugees Is Not So Welcome — In Ukraine,” published on February 22, 2024, by The Economist)

Jobs after college

Roughly half of college graduates end up in jobs where their degrees aren’t needed, and underemployment has lasting implications for workers’ earnings and career paths. That is the key finding of a new study tracking the career paths of more than 10m people who entered the job market over the past decade. It underscores the lasting importance of that first job after graduation. Of the graduates in non-college-level jobs a year after leaving college, the vast majority remained underemployed a decade later, according to researchers at labour analytics firm Burning Glass Institute and nonprofit Strada Education Foundation, which analysed the résumés of workers who graduated between 2012 and 2021. More than any other factor analysed — including race, gender and choice of university — what a person studies determines their odds of getting on a college-level career track. Internships are also critical.

(Adapted from “Half of College Grads Are Working Jobs That Don’t Use Their Degrees,” by Vanessa Furhams and Lindsay Ellis, published on February 22, 2024, by the Wall Street Journal)

Billionaire power in India

An exodus of star anchors. Fawning coverage of India’s political leaders. Newsroom censoring of reporters who ask the government tough questions on the economy, public policy and conflict. These are some of the changes journalists attribute to a management shakeup at New Delhi Television, which billionaire Gautam Adani acquired more than a year ago through a hostile takeover. Ahead of India’s national elections, NDTV has morphed into a government mouthpiece, according to current and former employees. On the face of it, India still has a vibrant media. But to many journalists, leadership changes at NDTV and diluted coverage across India illustrate how Prime Minister Modi has effectively brought to heel a once-riotous media. Newsrooms are being reshaped, they say, by India’s richest press barons, many of whom are close to the ruling party and depend on millions of advertising dollars from the government.

(Adapted from “Billionaire Press Barons Are Squeezing Media Freedom In India,” By Advait Palepu and Chris Kay, published February 26, 2024, by Bloomberg)

A new AI startup

This time last year, Arthur Mensch was still employed at a Google unit in Paris, and artificial intelligence had just started to take off in the public consciousness as something more than science fiction. Since then, so-called generative AI that can converse — and possibly reason — like humans has become the most talked-about technology breakthrough in decades. And the startup Mr Mensch left Google to launch, now all of nine months old, is valued at slightly more than $2bn. Mensch’s startup, Mistral AI is founded in part on the idea that a lot of that money is being wasted. The company is betting that its small team can outmanoeuvre Silicon Valley titans by finding more efficient ways to build and deploy AI systems.

(Adapted from “The 9-Month-Old AI Startup Challenging Silicon Valley’s Giants,” by Sam Schechner, published on February 26, 2024, by the Wall Street Journal)

Published in Dawn, The Business and Finance Weekly, March 4th, 2024